KNOCKOUT Cup holders Newcastle Diamonds face a devil of a long journey to Plymouth for the first defence of their hard-won cup when the 2013 season starts next March.

KNOCKOUT Cup holders Newcastle Diamonds face a devil of a long journey to Plymouth for the first defence of their hard-won cup when the 2013 season starts next March.

The clubs were paired together when the draw was made at the annual conference of the British Speedway Promoters’ Association (BSPA).

At present, the tie remains subject to an agreement between a new consortium set to take over from current Devils’ promoter Mike Bowden going through though, if everything were to collapse, the Diamonds would get a bye into the quarter-finals.

Newcastle will also be involved in a very attractive home-and-away clash for the Premier Shield against league champions Scunthorpe Scorpions in the early part of the new season.

The annual challenge for the Premier Shield between the league champions and cup winners was last raced for and won by the Diamonds in 2011 when they defeated Edinburgh.

The Shield remained in Newcastle’s possession as the scheduled meeting between Glasgow and Newport did not take place this year as the Welsh club folded.

Another big date pencilled in on the Byker calendar for next season is one of the matches in a series of five Tests between Team GB and Australia.

Newcastle co-promoter George English, who was re-elected to the BSPA Management Committee, said: “We were pleased with the way things went at the conference as all the Elite League and Premier League clubs seem set to run again, which is great considering the tough year we have all been through what with the atrocious weather and the economic downturn.

“We are trying to make our home fixture list as attractive as possible, which is why we have applied to stage one of what should be a cracking series of Test matches.

“The League Cup competition has been revamped into four smaller groups and we are in with Redcar Bears and Workington Comets, so there will be a lot of exciting local rivalry there.

“We will also be meeting Workington home-and-away for the Ian Thomas Trophy, in memory of a promoter who put together great Newcastle teams in the 70s and 80s.”

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